


Cold Comfort

by Substance



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Angst, Awkward First Times, F/F, Femslash, Masturbation, Sleepovers, Tail Sex, Yuri, catradora
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-08
Updated: 2020-06-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:48:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24613306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Substance/pseuds/Substance
Summary: Yuri/Femslash - Catradora - Spoilers for S5:E3 - Catra recalls a past sleepover with Adora. The Horde never bothered explaining the messier facts of life, so the cadets have to figure things out for themselves, a big enough challenge without the twin obstacles of love and resentment.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 150





	Cold Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own any of the rights to She-Ra. The following is written purely for entertainment, not profit.
> 
> Rated MA for awkward fumbling that might resemble sex. This isn't fluffy Catradora where some progress has been made. It's explicit, angsty and uncomfortable.
> 
> Spoiler alert: The framing device takes place during S5:E3. Catra's recollections are from just before S1:E1, so the characters are the same age as they are in the series.

Dry, sterile air filled the prison. A shock lifted the tiny hairs on Glimmer's neck. She didn't know whether the disturbance was due to the force-field or her visitor. 'You had _sleepovers_ , in the _Horde_?'

'Yeah,' said Catra.

'Adora didn't even know what a party was.'

'Neither did I, Sparkles.'

'Aw.' Glimmer was almost disappointed. 'So it wasn't just her?'

'I can see why you'd think that but no.'

Glimmer smiled. 'She never knew when to stop… and I'm just as bad these days. I think she's contagious.'

'You didn't know her back then. Don't act like you…' Catra bit her tongue. 'Whatever. Turned out, no one did, least of all me.'

Glimmer tried to salvage their brittle connection. 'So… sleepovers, hey?' She laughed nervously. 'I thought you lived in a dorm. Adora said you pushed her off the top bunk.'

'Heh, maybe.'

'Then how did you "sleep over"? Did you two snuggle up together? The big bad Catra and her Adora-sized teddy bear?'

There was no answer.

'Catra?'

* * *

Lonnie struck the wall. 'They're not fixing the heaters until the morning? Is Hordak serious?' Peeling her forehead off the cold metal, she scanned the locker room, daring anyone to fight her.

Adora kept warm by raining blows into her punching bag. Kyle fussed over a supine Rogelio. 'Um… I think he's gone into hibernation.'

'We'd best move him.' Lonnie supported Rogelio's back as Kyle struggled with legs wider than his own chest.

From the gloom, Catra said, 'You think Hordak cares enough to know? This is Shadow Weaver's doing.'

'What difference does it make? Help us if you've got nothing better to do.'

Catra went back to watching Adora. 'I'm busy.'

'Please yourself.'

Adora leant on her knees. 'Wait,' she said between gulps of air. 'I can…'

'Just keep your friend out of my sight. I wouldn't want to spoil her show.' Lonnie and Kyle took an arm each and dragged Rogelio away. His foot bounced off the doorframe as they left.

Adora's sweat rapidly cooled. 'Again, Catra? We should pull together at times like this.'

'You think they'd help _me_?'

'Not if you drive them away.' Adora grabbed a towel and wiped herself down. 'We've almost finished our training. You'll have to trust Lonnie in the field.'

'We can't trust anyone, Adora.'

'How will you track the enemy if you're always watching your back?' Adora rifled through her locker, shivering as she undressed. 'Seriously, Catra, why are you in such a mood? At least you've got fur. Spare a thought for the rest of us.' Catra's gaze wandered over the marks left by Adora's sports bra. Human skin was expressive. It remembered wrongs and kept promises their hearts did not, unlike Catra who moulted away the past if she didn't lock it inside. 'No excuses today?'

She folded her arms and looked away. 'Just everything.'

'We're all frustrated.'

'You don't have to speak for everyone, Adora. You're allowed to feel things.'

Adora finished changing. She closed the distance and squeezed Catra's shoulder. 'Okay, _I'm_ frustrated…' Catra thawed a little. 'With _you_.'

'Ow!' Catra fell on her haunches and rubbed her trapezius. 'Quit it.'

'Only if you make it up to me.' Adora waggled her eyebrows. 'Sleepover?'

Catra pushed her nose up to Adora's. 'Think you can do that and get everything you want, huh?' Their breath mingled with each exhalation. 'You'll have to catch me first.'

* * *

Adora was too exhausted from training to keep up, so Catra relented in exchange for watching her grovel. They laughed as Catra rubbed her foot in Adora's face… until Adora swallowed Catra's toes with a loud "nom".

The resultant screech alerted half the Fright Zone. Adora wasted no time. 'Got you!' Catra squirmed beneath her. 'Aah! You're such a sore loser.'

'Only because I gave you a chance.'

'And why would you do that?' Adora lowered her waist. 'You wanted to keep my bed warm, all along!'

'No, I didn't.'

'Oh yes, you…'

'Cadets!' The two flew apart at Octavia's bellow. 'No fighting in the corridors. If you have an argument, save it for…' Her good eye narrowed in recognition. 'Catra!'

'Run!'

* * *

Adora wasn't the target, so she lost her pursuers and crept back first. She hauled the thin blanket over her head, trying to keep her ears warm. Anticipation grew whenever she heard the doors part. She knew the soft rhythm of Catra's bootless tread. It circled the length of Adora's prone body, pausing ominously close. 'Hey, Adora.'

'Took you long enough.' Catra's glowing eyes filled her vision. Adora pushed them away. 'Lie with your back to me so I can get comfortable.'

Catra resisted the urge to bite as a thumb brushed her fang. 'Mind your paws! I need to defend myself when you sleep-fight.'

'I've got it all figured out. Just get in.'

Catra kneaded the mattress cover. 'Shift your arm.' She batted away the offending limb as if it was a mouse. 'Or it will go numb and you'll fidget.'

'Why do you have to make such a fuss, Catra?'

'Because you make everything so difficult.'

They finally settled after a vigorous bout of negotiation. Adora melted. 'Ooh, this is nice.'

Catra felt the weight of Adora's thigh on hers. 'You're heavy.' It didn't sound like a complaint.

'I'm your blanket, and you're my fluffy hot water bottle.'

'Shut up.'

Adora laid her hand on Catra's heart. 'Thank you. I mean it.'

'Yeah, well, we've got to look out for each other, and if this is what _I'm_ good for…'

Catra's insecurity never missed a beat. Adora sighed. 'You keep saying we'll be running things, and I'll need you then.'

'Will you?'

'Yes, and there'll be no more running and hiding. We'll have a big warm bed and…'

'Wait.' Catra's voice betrayed her smile. 'In your fantasy world of unlimited power, we have to share a bed?'

'I don't like sleeping alone, and you're _so_ soft. You wouldn't kick me out, would you?'

'Let me strap you down and I'll think about it.'

'Deal.'

Catra tilted her head back in acceptance. Her shoulders tensed as something wet her collar. 'Are you chewing my hair?'

'Needs brushing,' Adora mumbled into Catra's mane.

'Don't you dare.'

'I'll get my chance.' Adora began stroking Catra's waist, eliciting a purr. They were close enough that Adora heard it through her bones. 'Does that feel all right? I'm not rubbing your fur the wrong way?' Catra made a non-committal noise. 'Downwards or upwards?'

'Hurmph.'

'I don't talk sleepy cat.'

'Both.'

'Really?'

'Circles…. under the fur…' Catra hiked up her vest, freeing the base of her sternum. 'Bit further up.'

'So you're like one big scalp?'

'And you're one big forehead.'

Adora's world faded until there was nothing left but the heat from Catra's body, the sounds of her enjoyment and the interplay of skin and fur. Catra had a strong, earthy scent, far different from a human. She smelt like nature and excitement, an endless chase. Adora wondered if life could get better than this.

A pity, she had to grow strong and fight for it all.

Her mind wandered. She rode the fierce landscape of Catra's frame until an urgent cry broke the spell. Adora panicked. 'Sorry! Did I hurt you?' Her disobedient fingertips had scaled Catra's breast.

No one else in the dorm reacted. Cadets woke up from nightmares all the time. 'Uh, no.' Catra's mind was racing. She could feel Adora's touch through the stiff fabric. 'You surprised me. That's all.'

'Okay.' Adora hesitated. Other times, she would have teased Catra - they'd accidentally groped each other _a lot_ \- but she felt a tentative acceptance. Catra wasn't moving. 'It feels good on me there if I'm gentle. I didn't know if you were the same.'

'Yeah, it's the same.'

'Is it all right if I…?'

Catra's abdomen was coiled like a spring. She couldn't free the answer locked inside. All that came out was, 'Do what you want. I don't care.'

Adora pressed, earning a short gasp of acknowledgement. She resumed her massage. Her chest fluttered with every new sound Catra made. However, the top was like a breastplate. Adora grew tired of armour. She hooked a finger beneath the elastic and asked, 'Is it all right if I move this?' Catra's head twitched. It was impossible to judge consent. 'I won't look.'

'We change in front of each other all of the time.' Yet they never made eye contact.

'I'll stop if you want.'

'You can stop asking questions. I can speak for myself.'

Adora ceased her pull. 'Then do it.'

Catra's tail whipped between Adora's legs. 'How would you feel if _I_ stopped?' Silence. 'You're not going to make me beg.'

Adora never wanted to humiliate anyone, but she questioned her own reasons long enough to comply. She lifted the vest and heard Catra dissolve as air kissed her nipples. Adora slipped one arm beneath Catra's neck and explored with the other. Like the rest of Catra, her breasts were small but intensely defined. Soon, Adora learnt that running her fingers upwards and underneath, against the lay of the fur, provoked a reaction. Catra lifted her tail further, brushing Adora's thighs.

Catra's toes clenched and pointed. Her claws grasped the mattress in search of an anchor. She resented the fact this oblivious girl, who overshadowed her in every aspect of life, was making her feel this way.

Conceding without a word, Catra slipped a hand down her shorts to beckon her peak. She would take some agency in defeat. Adora was too anxious to comment.

A minute passed with no conversation but the call and response of breath and rustling. They wondered if these encounters happened elsewhere in the dorm under cover of sleep. As the wave grew, Catra hungered for contact, for those long muscles to surround her. Lifting her tail the final inch, she thrust her hips into Adora, inciting her like an animal in heat. Adora responded immediately, tightening her clutch and writhing until her movements became something more primal and rhythmic. She ground against the sensitive base of Catra's tail.

Satisfied that they were both losing control, Catra let go. She luxuriated in her power. Maybe Adora would never see her as an equal, never need her, never ache in her absence, but Catra knew she could _fluster_ Adora, get under her skin, if nowhere else.

Catra didn't savour her own release. It was an awkward experience, like being swept along a river, trying to keep her head above water. The wave crashed and the effort of suppressing the ripples before an audience choked her pleasure. Being so vulnerable, in another's arms and scent, released a menacing warmth. It prickled everywhere they touched, rose though Catra's neck and cheeks, overflowing as tears in the dark. She wanted someone… no, she wanted _Adora_ … to kiss them away.

This was unacceptable.

Catra withdrew her tail, and began peeling off Adora's trunks. Adora bit down on Catra's ear to stifle a moan. 'What are you…?'

'I'm helping. You'll be at it all night if you keep these on. And watch what you're doing with my ear! That hurt.'

'I'm sorry. It was an acci…'

'Whatever. Shut up and get on with it. Here.' Catra's tail struck Adora's bare labia. 'It's embarrassing enough that I finished first. If I have to…' She didn't know the word. 'So do you.' She grabbed Adora's buttock and ordered with a squeeze.

Adora stammered like an engine failing to start. 'Y… Your claws.'

'They're not out. Have some faith in me.'

'No! Use them… just a little bit.'

'Oh.' Catra sneered. 'You _like_ them, do you? I'm going to remember that.'

Adora moved slowly but forcefully. Her clinch was like a vice. Catra felt her ribs compress in time with Adora's repetitions. Tiny scratches from thigh to cleft inflamed every nerve, as though Adora felt alive only where Catra marked flesh.

Adora's consciousness wavered. She said, haltingly, 'Are you okay?'

'Fine,' Catra snapped. Of course, Adora had to take the high ground.

'Are you sure? I feel like I'm using you. Tell me if it hurts.'

Everything always hurt. 'You have more important things to focus on.' Catra dug in, leaving white trails on Adora's glowing flank. 'Use me. Stop acting like a hero and be selfish like the rest of us.'

'I… oh! Higher. My back! Please!'

'That's more like it. You're lucky I'm flexible.' With a twist of her arm, Catra finally drew blood.

'Yes, I'm lucky! I'm close, I…' Adora ground to a halt. She trembled. Her biceps lifted Catra's jaw with choking force. Adora muffled her climax by pressing her open mouth to Catra's brow. Trapped underneath, Catra's eyes bulged in alarm. She clawed at her throat as Adora slathered like a wolf.

The pressure eased. While Catra was shaken, trying not to make sense of her scattered thoughts, Adora was blissfully unaware. She clung on, deep in contentment, asleep to the world.

She pondered how things had changed over the years. Catra's barbs had grown less defensive and more knowingly cruel, but her touch remained. Whenever Adora feared their relationship was one-sided, all she had to do was reach out. Sometimes Catra responded playfully, sometimes violently, but she always had answers. Her intimacy was often as ugly as Catra herself was gorgeous, and Adora treasured it.

A candle flickered within Adora, lighting her soul with joy. Catra _was_ gorgeous, irritatingly so… and unique and expressive. Adora wondered why no one mentioned it. Either people were blind or they didn't want to inflate Catra's ego. She could be insufferable.

It wasn't fair. She deserved some appreciation. 'Thank you, Catra.'

'No problem,' said Catra. Her voice sounded raw. 'It was funny listening to you, even if my tail's going to be sore for days.'

'Think of it as payback for all the times you scratched me.'

'You said you liked it.'

Adora resolved to wear a gag next time she got excited. 'Not _all_ the time.' Catra hissed when Adora tried to pinch her cheek. 'Are you okay? You feel tense.'

'And you don't?'

'Should I?' Remembering her state of undress, Adora pulled her shorts up. They felt cold and grimy. 'Uh, Catra?'

'Yeah?'

'Did we do something bad?' Cadets were barred from touching certain areas. Adora fretted if there were hidden reasons. Maybe they'd broken or infected each other.

'Who cares? Not like anyone has to know.'

'So you're ashamed?'

'Well, yeah. Not like I share my bodily functions with people, or want to know theirs.'

'We've always shared everything.'

'Not everything.'

Adora frowned. She didn't expect to know Catra's every thought but what possibly remained after tonight? Suddenly it dawned. 'Have you ever kissed anyone?'

Catra's fur stood on end as her moment of weakness came to the fore. 'People in the Horde don't kiss, Adora. We're not soft.'

'Oh. That's…' a lie, a stupid one. 'I was just wondering.'

'Who would I even kiss? We're not _all_ popular.'

'You could kiss me, if you want.' No response. 'Are you scared?'

'I'm not doing this just because you're curious.'

Adora rubbed her temples. Catra was tying her mind in knots. 'But _everything else_ was all right?'

'Not really.'

'Oh.' The blunt reply sank Adora's heart. 'I'm sorry. I just wanted us both to feel... special. I… I won't bring it up again.' She sat up and wiped away tears. Had she broken her promise? 'I like you, Catra. You don't have to say it back.' A draft hit as Adora moved the blanket. 'I'll use your bunk.'

A terrible emptiness gripped Catra. 'No! Just… now it's done, stay, all right? Don't let me go while I'm...' She couldn't finish.

'You're not upset with me?'

'No more than usual.' Catra lowered her voice. 'But I will be if you take responsibility by running away.' She reached out. Her thumb stroked Adora's knuckle. 'Don't my choices matter?'

'Did you make one?'

'I did. I just answered on my terms, not yours.'

Adora lay back down. She looked into Catra's eyes. 'Was this was a mistake?'

'Only if you leave.' Catra ducked her gaze. 'I overreacted. I don't want to talk about it. I just want you to stay.'

'You didn't overreact.' Adora gladly snuggled up again. 'I'll never let you go, for as long as you need me.'

Catra murmured softly enough that only the pillow could hear. 'Do I even exist apart from you?' She had to find out one day. The subjection she felt in Adora's company was growing unbearable. For now, Catra gave into her need and settled into their embrace.

It would be so much easier if she hadn't been madly in love with Adora for longer than she'd known the meaning of the word.

* * *

Glimmer began to worry. 'Catra?'

'Oh… I was miles away.'

'Fond memories?' Catra didn't reply. 'The two of you must have been so close. How did it come to this?' Glimmer was scared for her own relationships.

'Everything, Sparkles. Everything led to this.'

Glimmer pictured Adora's open smile. How much was it hiding from the world? 'You know, I've always wondered. Were you more than friends?'

'Did Adora tell you otherwise?'

'No, but…'

'Well, there's your answer. Don't know why you're asking me.'

'Because she's the one person too bull-headed to realise.'

'You're not wrong, but that isn't how it works. I can't put those words in her mouth.' Catra stood up. 'Adora didn't break up with me.' The empty maze reflected her as nothing else did. Maybe this was her rightful home. 'I broke myself.'

'It all makes a lot more sense. _You_ make more sense.' Glimmer reached out across the floor, as if Catra was there, jailed alongside her.

'No. You're looking for reasons to like me because I'm all you have. Don't.'

'I don't _like_ you for pushing your grief on everyone else. I just see it now.'

'That's fair… but it was never just grief.' Catra walked away. 'Thanks for the talk, Glimmer.'

'"Sparkles",' corrected Glimmer with a wink.

'Heh.'

Catra returned to the corridors, the canvas upon which her memories played, again and again and…

* * *

**THE END**


End file.
